My obsessions are deflating my wallet. Help.

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Hello everyone!

I am having issues with expensive obsessions. Every few months I come across something new to research and look into....and 99% of the time I end up buying it.

I don't want to sound like a conceited dirtbag....but I want you guys to realize how bad it is (or maybe I just see it as being bad?). All these purchases I bought the top of the line (or close to it) products. This year alone:
1) New smartphone
2) Fish tank - set it up brand new and bought everything imaginable for it
3) New laptop (I convinced myself I needed a lighter laptop for uni)
4) New suit
5) New (used 2009) Acura
6) 3 bottles of cologne (I use one at a time, why did I buy 3?)
7) Refurnished my room (unnecessarily)
8) Various expensive brand name creams and face junk (hundreds of dollars worth)
9) 3 new pairs of shoes
10) Vitamins (Just bought 195$ worth of em on Amazon)
11) 2 watches

I cannot seem to stop. I just keep spending money. Somehow ideas will randomly pop into my head about something and I will research the heck out of it, read reviews left and right and finally I'll buy it. This list doesn't include all the clothes I've purchased this year.

Is this normal? It's not a shopping addiction I don't think. Most of these are not impulsive decisions; they were carefully researched and thought out. I am in no way broke (yet!) but my bank account is shrinking. I am not in credit card debt but I do use CC's to accumulate points/miles (another obsession!). I pay my bills in full and on time. It's a good thing I have a job lol.

Good for you to carry no debt - so many people get way in over their heads so I hope you give yourself lots of credit for that.

I do this and feel so guilty, but I am what I call a "small buyer". I think I am buying "little things", don't spend too much at a time - but it is cumulative. It is always books and health food is big for me right now. For a long time it was cloth material as I got into quilting - that can get pricey. You listed fish and I want fish so badly right now. I know I have two pets who, with school and work, need all the attention I can give them, and it wouldn't be fair to bring in another bunch of critters that need care - but, oh, do I wish. I settled for sea monkeys - 10 bucks Canadian and extremely minimal care - not the same as fish, but it helped quell my want. I will probably end up with a Beta yet. If I were turned loose, I would have so many critters.

I am not much help, but I hear you and you sound level headed. You are paying your bills, you are not in debt, and are you enjoying your purchases? I am a horrible person to speak as I don't care much about money, but I figure we have one go on this earth and as long as you are responsible "enough" - enjoy. One suggestion might be that you pledge for every dollar you spend you put "arbitrary amount" in a lock-down savings account - one you cannot access for a few months at a time - keep a rainy day fund and help you feel less worried about the things you are enjoying.

It seems like you're trying to fill an emotional void with material possessions. I'm a self-described borderline book hoarder, so I tend to do this with books. To control my impulses, I have a rule for myself. If I see a book that I like, I don't buy it right away; instead I wait 2 weeks. If I can still remember the title and the book still sounds appealing, then I'll buy it. Maybe you can try a similar technique for yourself.

The other thing that has helped me with the excessive spending is to go out and connect with more people. This helps alleviate that "empty" feeling. No emptiness-->no unnecessary expenditures.

I'm thrifty and saving money is one of my special interests, especially concerning energy and heating costs, so I guess I'm quite the opposite. However, not to spend money unless I really have to is also an obsession.

You sound like you have a shopping addiction.

I'm guilty in that, when I drink, I like to go on the internet and buy things. So far, I have 12 guitars, a bass, a violin and a melodica. Two days ago I purchased Sim Aquarium 3. Technically, it's free because I paid $14.95 but will be receiving a $15 rebate. Really, I'm nearly broke, but my guilty pleasure is buying food from restaurants. I get tired of my own boring cooking sometimes. Unfortunately, I live in a neighborhood with only a handful of restaurants. Maybe that's a good thing.

A few years ago I had debts amounting to £15000. Almost all of that money had been spent on items or trips related to my special interest at the time (I still have that special interest, but not to the same extent ... another has taken over).

I had to go through several very thrifty years to pay it off, and sell a lot of the special interest related items I had bought (which was painful) ... but I paid off every penny by June 2008.

In September 2011, I realised I had a debt of £6000 again, and that it had been mostly spent on my current special interest (which I've had since 2003). I have paid off £4000 of this debt over the last year by selling things and generally being extremely thrifty. But then I just added another £700 to it to pay for a trip related to my special interest at the end of January.

I don't have a shopping habit - in fact I hate shopping or buying things for the sake of buying things. My money (or lack of it) really does go on my special interests. It's a definite problem and it's a cycle that's hard to break.

You sound like a friend of mine. She buys a lot of stuff on eBay, and whenever she visits me, she wants to go to the store everyday. But her dad doesn't try to help her with her problem. Instead, he gets angry at her for buying so much junk. He only has negative things to say about her.

You don't sound any worse than the average American.

You sound a bit like me.
I quite simply tell myself not to spend any money on special interests. It doesn't completely stop my spending, but helps :).
Maybe you could set yourself a spending limit? Or put X amount of money into a bank account or whatever every month, and only use that money on special interests?
I know that's easier said than done, but I thought it was worth saying :).

I never had it this badly, and my interests don't cycle anywhere near this quickly. But there's a reason why my parents termed my occasional material interests "farts"...

I've been lucky in that my expenditures aren' t high priced for the most part. Can definitely relate though.